Mar Vista Mom Named Charter School Volunteer of the Year

On Feb. 29, the California Charter Schools Association (CCSA) presented the annual Hart Vision Award to the outstanding Charter Volunteer of the Year, Erika Ross, a parent from L.A.'s WISH Charter School, founded on the westside of Los Angeles in 2010.

We all know that when parents are involved in their schools, children benefit in huge ways. That has never been more true in this era of painful budget cuts to our public schools.

Ross is an inspiring example of what a difference parents can make, not only by rolling up their sleeves and volunteering at their school, but by being advocates, telling our elected officials what students need and holding them accountable for providing it.

Ross helped to establish a school garden at the school and is an active parent leader, coordinating several different committees and working to involve parents from across the school. Her parents and husband are also active volunteers at the school. From rolling up her sleeves to help paint the school to doing outreach to local elected officials, Ross supports her daughter's school on every level.

"As charter public school parents, we need to work together to show our representatives and our community why we support charter schools - and we need to bring them here and show them that this is what we've created. This isn't for some kids - this is for all kids. All public education should be this great," said Ross, who is an active member of Families That Can, a statewide organization of charter school parents united to hold our elected leaders accountable for ensuring every child has access to a high-quality public education.